Conversation Balloons

History scholar and author of 15 books about religion and politics Dr. Mark David Hall schools Leah on the varying degrees of religious fervor of the founders of the USA, as we get ready to celebrate America's 250th birthday. Additional resources: By Mark David Hall-- --Did America Have a Christian Founding? Separating Modern Myth from Historical Truth --The Sacred Rights of Conscience --Faith...

Humorist Chip Leighton keeps us in stitches as he recounts texts from teens and anecdotes about their dads that are at best what youngsters call "cringey." The perfect show to share for Father's Day! You'll want to pick up this bestselling author's good-natured pokes at both Gen Z and their parents. Additional resources: Dad, Can You Not? A Dad's Guide to Being Less Cring...

If our parents fall into mental or financial straits, what do we owe them?  How do we manage elderly parents' needs that threaten to overwhelm us?  Medical ethicist and Christian philosophy professor Bill Davis gives us balanced advice.  Part one of two honest conversations with the author of Honoring Dependent Parents. Additional resources: Books by Bill Davis: Honoring Dependent Parents: Biblica...

Laura McCall tells the horrifying story of her young daughter's descent into rages, anxiety, and obsessive/compulsive behaviors, the solution emerging with the child's diagnosis with PANDAS: Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections.  The related malady, PANS, Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome, is also discussed.  These disorders...

Wealth manager and financial expert Walter Clarke helps us raise financially-literate kids with his insights on talking with youngsters about money--even when it's tricky.  Do we give kids an allowance?  A custodial brokerage account?  The real story on why Dad's in debt?  A doll called Sam the Spender?  You  can't afford   not  to hear this episode! Additional resources:   Instagram @...

A pregnant woman has lots of choices today about how she will handle labor and delivery.  An experienced nurse and wildly popular influencer, Jen Hamilton, runs down all kinds of options--the trends in what mothers want, from "marinade-y water" to placenta smoothies, and expert recommendations about aromatherapy, saline locks, and "cascade of interventions."  We two can't resist some candid anecdo...

Best-selling author Tim Elmore gives gobs of tips, stories, and insights on Gen Z, not just as employees, but as family members and students. Who should listen? Business owners, college administrators, parents--and maybe even Gen Z. Clock us. Additional resources: Book by Tim Elmore: The Future Begins with Z: Nine Strategies to Lead Generation Z as They Disrupt the Workplace

Jackie Vernon Thompson, expert on courtesy, shares very personally how releasing forgiveness toward her absent father launched her into her career in etiquette training--truly from the inside out. Leah asks pesky questions about manners--like at fundraisers, on airplanes, and when meeting new people. Additional resources: From the Inside Out School of Etiquette https://fromtheinsideoutsoe.com/ www...

Like a birth doula, a death doula accompanies a person in a milestone physical transition by lending practical, emotional and even spiritual support to a dying person and their family. Laurel Nicholson is a "death and resurrection" doula. She shares with us stories and wisdom from companioning people from life into eternal life. Additional resources: Laurelnicholson.com International Fellowship Ca...

Students and screens don't mix, says Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, and he has the receipts. Why old school (handwriting, textbooks, and phone-free classrooms) is better school. Ed tech is Big Business, but children's cognitive ability, privacy, health, and academic mastery are being sacrificed for profit. How does he make this all so fun to listen to though? Additional resources: The Digital D...

Dr. Kerry Byrne suggests ways to maintain a long-distance relationship with tween and teenage grandchildren. Her research also shows us why this is so important. Check out her previous episode with us, about younger grandkids, and her website, which offers practical, encouraging tools for intergenerational connections. Additional Resources: TheLongDistanceGrandparent.com Instagram @thelongdistance...

Award-winning journalist Vicki Larson shares her practical and compassionate insights on "living apart together"--with Leah focusing on older couples who are finding new romantic interests but needing to consider some very real limitations. They even discuss how the New Testament might apply. Additional resources --Books by Vicki Larson: LATitude: How You Can Make a Live Apart Together R...

Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, lively neurosciencesplainer and educator, uses brain science to reveal why classroom technology is inhibiting our kids' attention, memory, and creativity. School teachers, students and their families should hear this! Additional resources: LME Global--Learning Made Easy -- lmeglobal.net The Digital Delusion: How Classroom Technology Harms Our Kids' Learning--And H...

Dr. Kenneth Cooper, researcher, physician, and founder of the Kenneth H. Cooper Institute at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, had to overcome widespread resistance to his belief that aerobic exercise improves rather than threatens health. Now a best-selling author, he sits down with Leah to describe how he personally came to grasp the importance of exercise, how his faith helped him t...

Author, filmmaker, and former US National Women's Gymnastics champion Jennifer Sey was forced to leave her job as Brand President at Levi's over her outspoken advocacy for kids. She's only bolder now, protesting boys in girls' sports and spaces. Jen founded XX-XY Athletics, sportswear that amplifies her POV. Additional resources: xx-xyathletics.com Levi's Unbuttoned: The Woke M...

You may have seen Kerry draw faces on bananas and oranges to make FaceTime chats fun for kids! But Kerry Byrne, PhD, is no lightweight. She speaks with compassion and clarity on connecting with children 10 and under--while miles away from them. This first interview of two with her will help aunts, uncles, and others who want to remotely strengthen their family ties with a child. Additional resourc...

Celebrating 100 episodes on Conversation Balloons! Tune in for a fun episode with some great moments of the show and some questions answered by Leah! Thanks for tuning in to Conversation Balloons over the years and wait to see who we interview next!

National gymnastics champ Jen Sey reveals the abuse and anguish she underwent to become a top-tier gymnast, and what parents of athletes--and other driven kids--can do to make sure their kids stay healthy. Additional resources : Chalked Up: My Life in Elite Gymnastics by Jennifer Sey https://www.xx-xyathletics.com

Researcher Kevin Waldman has discovered that college students are much more conservative than we thought. Is progressive peer pressure to blame? Does silence impair identity formation? Listen for some surprises! Additional resources: Forest Romm and Kevin Waldman, https://thehill.com/opinion/education/5446702-performative-virtue-signaling-has-become-a-threat-to-higher-ed/ https://psychform.com/

National TV anchor Leland Vittert's new memoir, Born Lucky , reveals how his father responded to Leland's diagnosis of autism, cheering him on despite rejection and bullying at school and the sacrifices that parents have to make for a child "on the spectrum." The book, currently #4 on the NYT bestseller list, will inspire any parent. Additional resources: Born Lucky: A Dedicated...

The recent NBA sports betting bust highlights only one of the online gambling problems corrupting young men, who are becoming addicted to gambling via sports betting in record numbers. Expert Jonathan Cohen lays out why online betting is not your father's gaming experience and how it is ruining lives with breathtaking speed. Even children are at risk with this new frictionless technology for losin...

Nolan Jones brings us up to date in his eventful life overcoming the demons of his past. We've never had such a story of transformation on this show!

Nolan Jones describes a rough childhood where virtually every adult in the family dealt drugs, and abuse was a way of life. Homeless as a teen, Nolan managed to graduate from high school, but not from drugs and criminality. Some glimmers of hope you'll hear in this episode burst into full light in the next, so tune in twice!

**THIS IS A REPRISE OF EPISODE #6 ON 5.18.22** Professor of Jewish Studies Ilana Horwitz's recent book God, Grades, and Graduation looks at whether students do better in school when they believe in God and belong to a community of faith.  Leah explores with this sociologist such factors as parental influence, compliance with school rules, and socioeconomic inequality.  "Leah's Quadrant" is reveale...

Veteran homeschooler of five kids and media entrepreneur Felice Gerwitz discusses how homeschooling has changed over the decades, and how to avoid burnout. Podcast swap!: Felice interviewed Leah in this episode of Vintage Homeschool Moms podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmIiG7BAwhc Additional resources: Mediaangels.com (founded by Felice Gerwitz)--a publishing company featuring curriculum,...